The Acer X34 is almost my perfect monitor for that mix of gaming and daily productivity.
It has a pretty all the right specs I’m looking for with support for up to 100Hz and
G-sync support for smooth gameplay and a gorgeous 34” Ultrawide with an IPS display that’s
perfect for productivity.
But it’s not perfect with its plasticity design and some noticeable coil whine when
overclocked, also it’s still quite pricey at around $1300 USD.
Regardless I still think it’s one of the best monitors available in the market today
if you need a single display for a mix of gaming and daily productivity.
Hi I’m David and this is my experience with the Acer X34 Ultrawide Monitor.
On paper there is a lot to like about this monitor.
For day to day tasks the large 34 inch ultrawide 3440x1440 resolution is my perfect size to
layout a couple applications.
And For gaming while there are higher refresh rate panels in the market if gaming is your
main purpose, the Acer is still very noticeably smooth and clear thanks to being overclockable
to 100 Hz refresh rate and support for G-Sync if you have an Nvidia graphics card.
And the slight 3800R curve is subtle but helps a little with immersion and viewing angles.
But a big reason why the Acer X34 being a couple years old now, still continues to be
one of the top gaming ultrawides in the market is because it uses an IPS panel.
IPS technology isn’t perfect, but I specifically prefer IPS displays since they have better
viewing angles and don’t shift in color as much compared to VA panel when you move
off angle and can even wash out corners when viewing dead center on such a large display,
Another reason some people prefer these IPS displays over VA is due to the slow pixel
response with dark backgrounds that can cause these shadow artifacts during motion in games,
but I’ll only really notice this if I’m looking specifically for it.
And I’m sure this will improve with newer iterations of VA panels.
The tradeoff though for choosing an IPS panel is the IPS glow that can be seen at night
on dark scenes and keeps it from having as good blacks as the VA counterparts.
Also with the Acer x34 you’ll need to overclock the panel to 100Hz beyond its native 60Hz
refresh rate.
This is super easy to do inside the on screen menu with a couple clicks but there is a small
chance your panel may not go all the way to 100Hz without displaying visual artifacts.
(Mine was fine at 100Hz) Also another downside I noticed with my monitor when overclocked
to 100Hz ,is that there is a noticeable coil whine buzz when viewing high contrast pages
such as black text on a white background.
It’s easily drowned out with a little bit of music or reduced when you revert back to
the 60Hz refresh rate but in quiet settings it can be annoying if you’re sensitive to
these kinds of noises.
Looking at the physical design of the Acer X34 there are also some things I like and
things I don’t.
The stand is really well built, feels solid and looks really nice.
It has a good amount of adjustments for tilt and height with some basic built in cable
management.
It does span quite deep and wide measuring 31 cm by 58 cm, so it doesn’t fit too well
on smaller desks.
But it does support VESA mounting, which has always been my preferring option to getting
a monitor positioned just right anyways.
I’m not a big fan of the shiny plastic construction on the back of the display, and it’s prone
to fingerprints as you would imagine but at least the front is pretty clean with the thin
frame design minus the large predator logo upfront.
The monitor also has built in LEDs along the bottom which can be nice given you can choose
the color, brightness and how it blinks at night, although I never really use it in practice.
The built in speakers are okay in a crunch but they aren’t the best I’ve heard and
I would never recommend them over a dedicated pair.
It requires an external power brick which is some extra cable management to worry about.
And port selection on the back is a little limited with just 1 HDMI and 1 Displayport
connector that’s required for G-sync support and overclocking to 100Hz refresh rate.
Overall the Acer X34 far from the perfect monitor.
I don’t like the glossy black design, the coil whine gets annoying sometimes, and it’s
still quite pricey given how old it is, but at that price premium I think you’re still
getting one of the best monitors in the market for both gaming and productivity in a single
display.
Especially if you’re like me a prefer IPS over VA panel for the great colors, viewing
angles and pixel response.
And while there are other IPS ultrawides in the market that are cheaper if you just need
it for productivity, For gaming that 100Hz refresh rate and g-sync support really improves
the gaming experience on faster paced titles.
So until someone comes out with a 144Hz, OLED, HDR Ultrawide monitor, the Acer X34 still
continues to be one of my top picks to beat.
But hope you guys enjoyed this one.
You know what to do.
And I’ll see you in the next video.